Cable ships en route to key sites in advance of main lay

The Australia Singapore Cable (ASC) project reached an exciting milestone over the weekend.

Alcatel Submarine Networks (ASN) completed the loading of the ASC’s 4600km of cable and 50 repeaters which were
manufactured in Calais, France.

The Ile de Batz and the freighter BBC Adriatic are now en route for Christmas Island and Singapore respectively. When
the BBC Adriatic arrives in Singapore it will offload its part of the cable to the Ile de Re, which will complete
the Northern lay.

Two ships are being used for the cable lay due to two different techniques being required.

The Ile de Batz will complete the Southern lay, from Christmas Island to Perth. This section of the cable lay is
relatively straightforward, with the cable being laid on the deep sea floor.

The Ile de Re will lay the cable from Singapore to Christmas Island. A 10km stretch of the ASC has already been
placed in a 10-metre-deep trench running out of Singapore Harbour. The Ile de Re will pick up the shore end of the
cable and continue the lay at a depth of up to 4 metres below the seabed for the rest of the route. The cable is
being buried in this section of the ASC to protect it from the shallow and highly trafficked Java sea.

We look forward to keeping you updated as the ASC completes these critical milestones in the coming months.